Heat wave of the century

The last 12 months have been the hottest in the United States since record-keeping began in 1895, the National Climatic Data Center reports.

This past March was the warmest ever recorded and the average U.S. mainland temperature in June was 71.2 degrees, two degrees above the 20th-century average, according to CNN.com. The report does not account for this month, in which 2,116 record-high temperatures have been tied or broken between July 2 and 8 alone. All-time state records in South Carolina and Georgia have been set at 113 and 112 degrees, respectively, and the National Weather Service issued excessive-heat warnings for California and Arizona on July 9, predicting temperatures from 110 to 115 degrees in some areas.